MERRITTON MATTERS
Merritton Matters Spring 2009
Merritton Matters Spring 2009
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<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong><br />
Spring 2009 • Volume 6, Issue 2 • www.merrittonmatters.ca<br />
The Students and Staff of Merritton High School Ten Years Ago<br />
Inside This Issue<br />
• Upcoming Events<br />
• Merrittonians We’ve Lost<br />
• Historic Merritton Baseball<br />
• Evolving of a Neighbourhood – We Finish<br />
Our Thought<br />
• Burleigh Hill Public School Curls<br />
• More You Know You’re From Merritton If...<br />
• Trivia<br />
• Memorable Jim Smith<br />
• Krista is Lunette-Alike<br />
• St. James Becomes Accessible<br />
• Habitat for Humanity<br />
Mailing Merritton<br />
Matters<br />
Do you know someone who lives out<br />
of town who might like to receive the<br />
Merritton Matters? If so, please call Doreen<br />
at 905-680-1959 to arrange for copies to be<br />
sent to them.<br />
C he ck out our ne w website at www.merrittonmatters.c a.
The Merritton Community Group<br />
The Merritton Community Group<br />
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can<br />
change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. (Margaret<br />
Mead)<br />
Who is the Merritton Community Group?<br />
The Merritton Community Group (MCG) is dedicated to the<br />
development and enhancement of the social and economic character of<br />
Merritton. We support Merritton as a distinctive heritage community.<br />
Our group is open to anybody who subscribes to this mission and wants<br />
to contribute to the community and economic betterment of Merritton.<br />
At our January annual general meeting, we elected a new board of<br />
directors – Chair Sheila Morra, Vice-Chair Morag Enright, Secretary<br />
Steve Hinchliffe and Treasurer Jean Westlake.<br />
We’re so pleased to see that Doreen England, who mails the Merritton<br />
Matters to people who don’t receive it with their Standard, is on the<br />
mend!<br />
I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong><br />
Who writes the MM articles?<br />
The Editor/Writer is Lorraine Giroux. Contributions have been received,<br />
with much appreciation, from: Tom Barwell; Pamela Guyatt; Rob<br />
Hughes; Dorothea Ives; Cindy Munro; Sheila Morra; Cathy Pelletier and<br />
Phyllis Thomson. If you have an article or suggestions for articles, please<br />
send us an email to merrittonmatters@hotmail.com or mail to 19 Wanda<br />
Rd, St Catharines, ON L2T 1S5.<br />
Who took the pictures for this issue?<br />
Jean Westlake is our chief photographer.<br />
Upcoming Events in Merritton<br />
Date Event Where When What You Need to Know<br />
May 2 Adopt-a-Street Road Clean Meet in parking area of Tim Hortons 10:00 a.m. Many hands make light work!<br />
May 3 Journey for Sight Meet at Grantham Lions Hall Registration at 9:00 a.m. Go to www.granthamlionsclub.com<br />
for information.<br />
May 10 Merritton Locks Park Hike Meet in parking area at Westchester Noon For more information, go to<br />
and Oakdale Avenues<br />
www.thewellandcanalsadvocate.ca.<br />
May 16 Las Vegas Night Merritton Legion<br />
May 19 MCG Open House Seniors Centre 7:00 p.m. All welcome!<br />
May 30 Lions Lobster Fest Community Centre Tickets are $65.00. Contact Geoff<br />
Crane @ 905-684-7655 or Mario<br />
Girotti @ 905-227-5170<br />
June 20 Dog Guide Fundraising Dance Community Centre 7:00 p.m. Karen O’Connor’s fifth annual dance<br />
with $21,000 raised to date<br />
June 28 MCG Garden Tour Lovely gardens in our community Tickets at Bloomin’ Busy<br />
July 4 Community Appreciation Day Community Centre and Dunc Schooley Pool Rededication of the Community Centre<br />
And don’t forget the Legion’s Fish Fry on the 2nd and 4th Friday each month.<br />
Yes, We Won Again!<br />
Landscape Ontario held a juried competition and then recognized<br />
winners at the Awards of Excellence Gala. On January 6 th , we were<br />
invited to attend to receive further recognition for our Heritage Bins<br />
project. West Park Secondary School is now undertaking the project’s<br />
Phase Two, designing and painting bins with pictures of historic<br />
Merritton sports achievements and participants.<br />
ULTRA SAVINGS ON INSTOCK WALLCOVERING<br />
The Wallpaper Place<br />
***In Stock and Book orders***<br />
We are here to serve you<br />
20 Hartzel Rd., Unit 16<br />
St. Catharines<br />
(905) 984-5660<br />
Fax (905) 984-2148<br />
www.wallpaperplace.ca<br />
DECORATE YOUR CASTLE AT COTTAGE PRICES
Merrittonians We’ve Lost<br />
Whenever we hear that we’ve lost another Merritton community<br />
member, it reminds us of the wonderful contributions so many<br />
people have made to this great community.<br />
On October 1 st , we lost David Hayes. He was a former<br />
teacher, Merritton High School principal and superintendent. On<br />
October 12 th , Kathleen Michaud passed away. She was an active<br />
community member, particularly in the CWL of St. Patrick’s<br />
Church and in the Girl Guides, Hartzel District, and later in the<br />
Trefoil Guild. On October 15 th , Janette Marshall passed away.<br />
Merritton was Janette’s home town and after serving in the Armed<br />
Forces during World War 11, she returned home, married Bill,<br />
and both of them became very active in the Merritton community,<br />
serving in many capacities over the years.<br />
On January 13 th , Eva Glyn-Jones died at 90 years of age.<br />
Mike Collins wrote to tell us that he remembers when he was in<br />
Eva’s grade 12 Algebra class in 1962. “She was VERY firm but we<br />
certainly were well prepared when the provincial Grade 13 exams<br />
rolled around. Everyone in the class respected and admired Mrs.<br />
Glyn-Jones at Merritton High.” Spencer Fielder passed away on<br />
January 28 th . Spencer had been a member of the Merritton Royal<br />
Canadian Legion Branch 138 for 38 years. His daughter Deanna,<br />
along with her husband Robert Mussell, has continued this long<br />
tradition of service with the Legion.<br />
To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw, we know that these<br />
people truly believed that their life was part of a community and as<br />
long as they lived, it was their privilege to do for it whatever they<br />
could.<br />
Sharing Memories<br />
We strongly believe that part of our reason for existence as a<br />
Merritton organization is the need to recognize contributions<br />
made by people to our community. Please let us know if you’d<br />
like to share a memory about someone who has recently left<br />
us. We’re not talking about the conventionally paid obituaries<br />
but more like the Globe and Mail’s Lives Lived minibiographies<br />
that leave readers feeling like they’ve shared a cup<br />
of coffee at Timmy’s with the person. Thanks to Tom Barwell<br />
for starting us off. Email us at merrittonmatters@hotmail.com<br />
if you have a recollection that you would like to share.<br />
John (Jack) Craig<br />
By Tom Barwell<br />
Jack passed away on Saturday, January 20, 2009. Not only did we lose a<br />
great Merrittonian, we lost another Veteran of World War II. Jack took<br />
an active part in the invasion of France. There are not many of these<br />
brave Canadian warriors remaining.<br />
He was not just a soldier. Jack was an artist, hunter, fisherman,<br />
golfer and a volunteer. He wrote many articles for the local papers and<br />
I read them all. They were full of history and interesting ideas. He<br />
was not shy of voicing his views on any subject. As an avid reader, his<br />
knowledge of world and local events was astonishing.<br />
Jack came from the family of Craigs who, for many years, lived in<br />
Merritton. His passing will be sorely missed by the community.<br />
Editor’s Note: John (Jack) Craig was the husband of Jean, father of<br />
John, Colleen and Kathleen, and brother to Betty, Sheila and Dr. David<br />
Craig. For 40 years Jack wrote a weekly column “Here and There” for the<br />
Thorold News. Merritton Matters has been very fortunate over the past<br />
years to receive recollections of Merritton days gone by from Jack, as well<br />
as from his siblings Sheila and David.<br />
Calling All<br />
Gardeners...<br />
Our annual garden tour is fast<br />
approaching! Should you be<br />
interested in allowing a tour of your<br />
garden this year or know of someone<br />
else who has a green thumb.... please<br />
call Pat at Bloomin’ Busy flower<br />
shop, 905-988-8840.<br />
Sunday, June 28th we will host our 2009 self-guided tour of Merritton<br />
gardens. Tickets are $10 each and will be available at: Bloomin’ Busy Flower<br />
Shop; Merritton Community Pharmacy; Home Hardware and Lock 3 Museum.<br />
Remember, all gardeners love to share ideas with other gardeners, no matter<br />
what the size of your treasured green space. Please don’t be shy, sign up!<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I
Art Barclay<br />
By Tom Barwell<br />
Merritton is mourning the loss of one<br />
of its own. Art Barclay, whose family<br />
name is well known in Merritton,<br />
recently passed away. Art was a big<br />
man and a gentle giant type of guy.<br />
But for his size he was surprisingly<br />
light on his feet. This enabled him to<br />
be a very good athlete. I remember him playing basketball for<br />
Merritton High School and he was one of the better players.<br />
Baseball was another one of his favourite sports and he played<br />
at all levels in Merritton. One little episode has stuck in my<br />
mind even though it happened over 50 years ago. It was a<br />
midget game and it was being played at Kernahan Park against<br />
our hated rivals, St. Catharines. Art came up in a dream<br />
situation. His team was losing by three runs in the bottom of<br />
the last inning and heads were hanging. Up comes Art. The<br />
pitch was thrown and with one mighty swing he belted the<br />
ball out of sight. Game over. As Art came trundling down the<br />
third base line, he was surrounded by his team who were all<br />
yelling and screaming. His reaction? Next to nothing. That’s<br />
the way he was. Humble to the core. Just a great person. I lost<br />
track of him over the years but I was not surprised to learn of<br />
his activities socially in the area. Now, tragically, he is gone,<br />
well before his time. But, I am sure that up among the stars he<br />
has hit another grand slam. God bless you Art and thanks for<br />
the memories.<br />
The Evolving of a Neighbourhood<br />
(continued from last issue)<br />
Editor’s Note: The gremlins must have been at work in the Fall/Winter issue because the<br />
last paragraph of the article ‘The Evolving of a Neighbourhood’ on page 15 became lost in<br />
the printing process. The only positive thing about it was that so many of you noticed it<br />
was missing and wrote or telephoned to let us know. (Thanks to Mel Lawrence of Trenton<br />
Ontario for being the first to alert us!) We have apologized to our writer Phyllis Thomson<br />
(and promised her a lifetime supply of tea so she’ll keep writing for us) and we have<br />
reprinted the conclusion of this article.<br />
Synopsis....The little area to the west of Burleigh Hill was originally a dairy farm<br />
owned by Francis Wark. It became a subdivision of thirty-six homes in the ‘60’s, but<br />
has remained relatively obscure, hidden as it is at the foot of the escarpment…….<br />
Conclusion....There have been a few larger homes added to the area since l960, but<br />
basically it has retained its small neighbourhood status with only one road serving<br />
both in and out traffic to/from Burleigh Hill Drive which seems to have worked pretty<br />
well for many years. But no neighbourhood is totally perfect, and I’m sure there have<br />
been some challenges along the way and I witnessed one on my recent visit to the<br />
area. Ste-Marguerite French Speaking School, which replaced St. Patrick’s school in<br />
l989, and the adjoining Day Care Centre, appears to have grown in popularity and<br />
population and with that has come traffic problems as cars arrive to pick up or deliver<br />
the children and have no place to park except along the narrow street leading in and<br />
out of Burleigh Hill. And I understand that there is now a proposal to build several<br />
townhouses where Rockdale and Warkdale meet, which is cause for concern for the<br />
residents and, having lived there, I can understand their consternation. But, from my<br />
point of view, this remains a unique little community.<br />
I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
You know you’re from<br />
Merritton if...<br />
• you had your name on the birthday train at Julio’s Plant 2<br />
• you waited for the groceries to come out on the “rolly belt” at the A&P<br />
• you went roller skating at Wheelies<br />
• you had sweat pour down your face while eating chicken wings at<br />
Friar Tucks<br />
• you got yelled at by the rink rats at Merritton Arena for doing the whip<br />
In the next issue, we’ll share some that were sent to us by Dave<br />
Breakwell.<br />
More You Know You’re<br />
From Merritton If...<br />
We had a great response from the list of “You Know You’re From<br />
Merritton If…..” that we published in the last newsletter. The first<br />
set of additions are from Sue Anderson who said in her letter “Your<br />
list brought back lots of memories and exclamations of “Oh yes, I<br />
remember that”. Thanks for your newsletter and the memories it<br />
kindled. I showed this article to my daughters and they enjoyed it and<br />
added a few of their own.”<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I
Merritton Baseball<br />
Jim Salomone let us know that his mother-in-law (Mrs. Margaret<br />
Saunders) had the following photograph of a Merritton baseball team and<br />
knew that our readers might be interested.<br />
They could only identify four of the players but we know that some<br />
of our readers will be able to help. We believe that the person in the front<br />
row, 2nd from the right, is Omar (Lefty) Savoie. In the back row, 3rd from<br />
left is Orm Simpson, and the 8th from the left is Jim’s father-in-law, Reg<br />
Saunders. Fifth from the left in the back row we believe is Angie Pastore.<br />
Unfortunately these four have passed on, but were all long-time residents<br />
of Merritton. Likely they were all employed at Hayes-Dana at the time.<br />
Let us know if you recognize any other players.<br />
Signs of Spring<br />
Thank you to all who attended our ‘Signs of Spring’ dance in March. Proceeds<br />
have been directed towards the purchase of a sign welcoming everyone to our<br />
Merritton community to be placed at the entrance of Mountain Locks Parks.<br />
The Merritton Community Group greatly appreciates the donation of prizes<br />
for the dance. Donors include: Canadian Tire Fourth Ave.; Laser Assist Dentistry;<br />
Bloomin Busy Flower Shop; Home Hardware; Sewing Machine Essentials; Merritton<br />
Community Pharmacy; J. Lombardi - Subway Pen Centre; Sheri’s Creative Edge;<br />
Burtnik Printing; A. Hartnett; M. Enright; C. Morra - Boston Pizza; Garden City<br />
Automotive; Dairy Queen; Time Bomb Computers; Pizza Hut; Shoppers Drug Mart;<br />
Midas; Stephanie’s Flowers; and Dana Does Dirt – Cleaning.<br />
History of Ladies Softball<br />
in St. Catharines<br />
Marg Schram is in the process of writing a book entitled The<br />
History of Ladies Softball in St.Catharines:1920-1960. She needs<br />
pictures of the many teams that represented Merritton in that era.<br />
Any original pictures would be appreciated. Please let her know<br />
if you can help by contacting her at 905-684-2515 or schrambo2@<br />
sympatico.ca.<br />
I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
Merrittonians in Sports Hall<br />
of Fame<br />
Last Issue’s Trivia<br />
Edna (Green) Groff provided us with the following list of breakfast<br />
restaurants in Merritton.<br />
Early Bird, Fortis Restaurant, Good Eats, Lancer Restaurant, Oma<br />
and Opa’s, Queenston Grill, Sunrise Cafe, Tim Hortons, Tony’s, and the<br />
third Sunday of the month at the Legion on Chestnut St.<br />
There were a few on Edna’s list that we hadn’t included when we<br />
created the trivia question. She added Tim Hortons onWelland Ave<br />
which is outside our boundaries. Several at the Pen Centre (A and W,<br />
London Arms, The Bay) weren’t originally included because they don’t<br />
consider themselves ‘Merritton’ although we certainly know better!<br />
Richard and Barbara Mawhood gave us their list of breakfast<br />
locations in Merritton Ward which had a few more, namely Lester D’s,<br />
The Flats, Fortis, Mozie On In Diner and Donut Diner.<br />
We know that happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast and, even<br />
more so, if eaten at a restaurant in Merritton.<br />
Previous Trivia<br />
– Aiken and McLachlan<br />
We want to recognize those who became part of the St. Catharines Sports<br />
Hall of Fame on April 28 th . Two of these people, George (Clickey) Taylor and<br />
Bruce Erskine, were important parts of our Merritton sports history. Other<br />
inductees were Bob (Buff ) McCready, Marianne Groat and Mark Walters.<br />
George worked diligently for the Merritton Athletic Association,<br />
coaching baseball for 35 years. He was at the helm when teams achieved<br />
six Ontario titles. He was Community Park’s head groundskeeper when<br />
we had the Penn League Blue Jay’s team. Bruce attended Merritton High<br />
School and we like to think that his interest in rowing really got started<br />
when he rowed for the school. Honoured posthumously, he was a fourtime<br />
gold medalist at the Henley, a coach and official for 35 years. His wife<br />
Sue, also a Merritton student, was inducted in 1997.<br />
Your Letters<br />
Dorothy (Pirie) Hanna wrote to tell us how much she enjoyed ‘Merritton<br />
Matters’. She has lived in Merritton most of her life, first on Elm Street,<br />
then Almond and eventually over near the Pen. In the past issue, Tom<br />
Barwell had written about lawn bowling beside Main’s Drug Store. Her<br />
mother had bowled there for years with other ladies from Merritton and<br />
her mother and father met at the drug store when it was Bob Stewart’s<br />
before Main’s. That same issue also featured a picture of the train station<br />
and she reminded us that it was at the corner of Bessey and Merritt and<br />
for street cars, heading to Port Dalhousie.<br />
In the Fall issue, we showed a picture of a concrete truck from a company<br />
that has since disappeared from Hartzel Road. We hadn’t heard anything<br />
about it when we went to press with our Winter issue. In January,<br />
Dorothea Ives contacted us with some fascinating information and we<br />
have printed her letter below.<br />
Aiken and McLachlan Construction and Ready Mix was a thriving<br />
business during the 1950’s and 60’s. It was located at an angle, across<br />
the street from the Cosy Grill in what is now the Food Basics parking<br />
lot, where the Itt’s Thai Restaurant now stands. The front office was<br />
a two-story brick building housing several offices and work stations.<br />
There was a second building behind that which housed the equipment<br />
and the Ready-Mix.<br />
I joined the office staff of this company in the mid 1960’s. I met<br />
much kind, hard-working, good people during my few years there.<br />
Even my father was a past employee at that time.<br />
As time passed, the company ran into some difficult times and<br />
relocated to Ontario Street with many employees having been laid off.<br />
After a fairly short while, its doors closed permanently.<br />
I have many memories of the Hartzel Road area as I have spent<br />
much of my life in the neighbourhood. My parents moved the family<br />
to 35 Hartzel Road in the 1930’s and the house remained in the family<br />
until my mother’s death about 25 years ago. I returned in 1960 to<br />
raise my own family of 8 children on Marmora Street, just around the<br />
corner. They all attended Merritton High School. I now live in Secord<br />
Woods as do 2 of my daughters.<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I
War Two Veterans<br />
After hearing of the recent revitalization of our Cenotaph, Betty (Cowan)<br />
Munro thought Merritton Matters readers would be interested in hearing<br />
about a Civic Appreciation Banquet held more than a half century<br />
ago. We definitely were and asked the family to provide us with more<br />
background.<br />
WW II Appreciation Event<br />
By Cindy Munro<br />
In 1946 the town of Merritton held an Appreciation Banquet and Dance<br />
which was by invitation only for all the service men and women of WWII<br />
who were residents of Merritton. It was hosted by then Mayor, Leslie<br />
Skipper, along with the council and other dignitaries. It took place at the<br />
Merritton High School auditorium on Monday, May 6 th , 1946. The stage<br />
was decorated with a banner representing all the various forces, the Army,<br />
the Navy and the Air Force. The Mayor officially welcomed them home<br />
with the town’s inscribed thanks for their service ensuring the enjoyed<br />
victory for treasured Canadian freedom. The servicemen were presented<br />
with a token of appreciation – a ring with the Merritton crest. The<br />
servicewomen were presented with a makeup compact with the town crest.<br />
Merritton once again was a shining example to other townships in<br />
how they honoured their own in such a nice way. It was a wonderful<br />
evening with the stage set, prayers and speeches offered, and touching<br />
expressions of thanks presented. Even though the lights have dimmed on<br />
that night, and the years have passed, the Merritton veterans who are still<br />
living will never forget the town’s spirit.<br />
ABOVE: Munro family being honoured for two generations of active<br />
military service in WWII From left to right John Munro, Charles<br />
Munro Sr., Charles Munro.<br />
TOP RIGHT: Mayor Leslie Skipper and (from left to right) Dorothy<br />
Stradwick, unknown person, Joyce Martin, Rita Macintosh, Betty<br />
Cowan, Peggy Catteral, Marion Hough.<br />
RIGHT: Overall view of Civic Appreciation Banquet; Mayor Skipper,<br />
Town Council and dignitaries are pictured on the stage and the<br />
Veterans with escorts are seated.<br />
I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
Habitat for Humanity<br />
For the first time in nearly a decade a Habitat for Humanity home building project is occurring in St. Catharines. The land has been secured and the<br />
site is in our community. The property on Merritt St. by Birch Lane, adjacent to the newly constructed bridge on the site of the former Ricci’s Tavern,<br />
has been purchased for the home. A family from St. Catharines will be purchasing the home under the unique Habitat for Humanity Niagara home<br />
ownership program. Every build requires a funding champion. MCG has approved a motion to be the fundraising champions for the new Habitat for<br />
Humanity Build in Merritton. The Merritton Community Group is actively looking for ways to support this project which requires $80,000 to get off<br />
the ground, of which $30,000 has already been committed, leaving $50,000 to be raised by September.<br />
To learn more about Habitat for Humanity Niagara, we asked Cathy Pelletier to write an article on the organization.<br />
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OPENS DOORS IN NIAGARA<br />
by Cathy Pelletier<br />
Habitat for Humanity Niagara is a non-profit, faith-based community<br />
organization working toward a world in which everyone has a safe and<br />
decent place to live. By mobilizing volunteers and community partners,<br />
HFHN builds affordable housing and promotes home ownership as a means<br />
to breaking the cycle of poverty Part of that commitment involves paying<br />
back some of the “sweat equity” invested into their home, by donating 500<br />
hours (per family) of labour with another Habitat for Humanity initiative<br />
or in their community. The selected family must practice pride of home<br />
ownership and pass that pride on to their children in order to break the<br />
cycle of poverty.<br />
Using donated land and municipal co-operation, HFHN can build<br />
single-family homes for about $65,000. Cash donations are leveraged more<br />
than twice with gift-in-kind, gift-in-service and special rate contracts.<br />
HFHN houses are then purchased at fair market value with no down<br />
payment and no-interest mortgages. Homeowners’ payments are set at<br />
less than 25 percent of gross income for principal and property tax, and<br />
payments are geared to income.<br />
Each time HFHN builds a house, a ripple effect reaches out into the<br />
entire community. Families become less reliant on social services and<br />
food banks, student and apprentice builders become skilled trades workers<br />
within their community, the local economy prospers, volunteers become<br />
engaged, and the entire community feels fulfilled while working together to<br />
effect positive change in such a tangible, meaningful way.<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I
Good-Bye<br />
It’s the end of an era.<br />
After 36 years serving the<br />
Merritton area, the Hartzel<br />
Road McDonalds closed<br />
at 11:00 p.m. on March<br />
31 st . The bell tolled for Pen<br />
Financial Credit Union on<br />
Glendale, at the Seaway building, that day as well. Some might remember<br />
that this was the former Civic Employees Credit Union.<br />
10 I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
A Memorable Man and a Memorable Era<br />
at Merritton High School<br />
By Phyllis Thomson<br />
Do you remember your high school Principal? I<br />
do. Although we never met in my years at high<br />
school, I remember him very well! When my<br />
friends and I were about to enter Grade 9 (known<br />
as ‘First Form’ many eons ago) we had been<br />
warned that ‘HE’ (nary a ‘she’ back then!) was a<br />
dreaded Simon Legree, an ogre who was there for<br />
the prime purpose of meting out punishment, to<br />
be feared and avoided at all costs. So, being well<br />
warned, when he walked down the hall it was<br />
like the parting of the waters, we would all flatten<br />
ourselves up against the nearest wall of lockers<br />
until he passed. And if he happened to know your<br />
name, you knew you were in big trouble!<br />
The students at Merritton High School during<br />
the 50’s and 60’s were lucky – Jim Smith just didn’t<br />
fit that stereotype at all - he seemed to enjoy the students and despite<br />
the fact that he did know many by name, most of the time you were<br />
safe! He could be a stern disciplinarian when needed, but was always<br />
approachable and always fair. The students respected him and liked him.<br />
Add to that an extraordinarily likeable teaching staff for the most part,<br />
and it made for a pleasant atmosphere.<br />
Following graduation from Stamford Collegiate, Jim went on to<br />
graduate from McMaster University in Hamilton and the Ontario<br />
College of Education in Toronto. He accepted his first teaching position<br />
in Delhi in l948 where he remained until Thorold High School beckoned<br />
in l951. In l954 he moved down the hill to Merritton High as Vice<br />
Principal where he and I shared an office for a few years. The students<br />
of that era will remember, I’m sure, that tiny little office where we both<br />
had our desks along with several pieces of office equipment and, usually,<br />
a few students to be found in there as well. In l958, he became Principal<br />
of Merritton High and it was a sad day for the students in 1966 when<br />
he decided to accept the Principalship of a new school that was about to<br />
open in the north end of St. Catharines – Laura Secord.<br />
It was a great testament to the esteem in which they held him, when<br />
several of our staff members decided to join him there, but it was a<br />
tremendous loss for Merritton High School. One of these teachers told<br />
me years later, that when they left Merritton to go with Jim to Laura<br />
Secord, they started calling the new school “Merritton North”! In 1974<br />
Jim was offered a Superintendent’s position, which he accepted, and<br />
where he remained until his retirement in l981. I asked him if he enjoyed<br />
this last phase in his long teaching career and he gave me a resounding<br />
“very much”.<br />
Jim and his wife, Florence, knew each other in high school. While<br />
Jim was at McMaster, Florence was in the nursing programme at the<br />
Hamilton General Hospital. Jim’s version of how they started dating is<br />
that Florence called him up at McMaster and asked him to chaperone<br />
her at an upcoming nurses’ dance – they will soon celebrate 61 years of<br />
marriage so I think we can now safely say that the rest is happy history!<br />
Four ‘little Smiths’ arrived over the years, Moira, Kirk, Shelley and Tara<br />
- two have become teachers with the local board of education, while two<br />
have chosen other professions, and there are now nine grandchildren<br />
and eight great-grandchildren for Jim and Florence.<br />
They still spend summers at their cottage north of Kingston and<br />
in retirement they have enjoyed traveling around Britain and Western<br />
Europe. Jim, and many former Laura Secord teachers,<br />
began a tradition which continues to-day – they meet<br />
for breakfast once a week at local restaurants – what a<br />
great way of keeping in touch!<br />
He has enough memories of his years in<br />
education to fill a book (now there’s an idea worth<br />
pursuing!) and here is just one …..“I remember well<br />
the day when ‘Surf was Up’ at Merritton High School.<br />
The date may have been the Spring of 1960. Before<br />
I went out for lunch, I noticed some water under the<br />
vending machines in the cafeteria and when I came<br />
back some students were waiting for me at the office<br />
door. “Mr. Smith” one of them said, “you’ve got to<br />
come down to the cafeteria right away”. A very unusual<br />
sight greeted me. Water was spurting up through<br />
the joints in the terrazzo floor in a manner similar to<br />
water spurting from a perforated garden hose and it was starting to flow<br />
down the hall towards the gymnasium. Through the quick action of a<br />
group of boys from the Gym and Shop, gym mats were used to block<br />
the flow at the end of the hall to direct it into the furnace room where<br />
George Wilson, our caretaker, then directed it into the floor drain. Thus<br />
the Gym and Shop floors were saved. And what was the explanation as<br />
to the source of the flood? A new addition had been built on Merritton<br />
High in l954. The footing of the new addition had settled onto the<br />
footing of the older building which, in turn, rested tightly against the<br />
water main. In time, the added weight of the addition eventually cracked<br />
the water main which entered the basement from a spot on Merritt<br />
St. opposite the intersection with Oakdale. As you can imagine, the<br />
situation required considerable excavation to repair. In this emergency<br />
operation to save the Gym and Shop, it was a moment to remember<br />
when about ten boys took off their shoes and socks and, as they grabbed<br />
the gym mats and ran to put them in place to block the water, all of<br />
them were shouting ‘Surf ’s Up’ – which provided a bit of levity to an<br />
otherwise potential disaster.”<br />
Jim reflected on the many reasons the Merritton Community has<br />
an especially warm place in his heart. ......“In the late summer of l953,<br />
a terrible epidemic of polio was raging and Florence became infected.<br />
Isolation wards at the hospital were full so we, along with our three year<br />
old daughter Moira, were placed in isolation for three weeks at home,<br />
which at that time was on Bessey Street. During that time, we never<br />
wanted for anything - neighbours and parents of students brought us<br />
groceries and, often, fully cooked meals until the quarantine was lifted.<br />
Merritton was sometimes referred to as a ‘Lunch Bucket Community’<br />
and I fitted into that community very well. A Department of Education<br />
official, who had once been my teacher, said “For a good principal, a<br />
school should be his second family” and, for me, it was. There was back<br />
then an undisputed community spirit which I know still lingers in the<br />
Merritton Ward today.”<br />
By the time you read this, Jim will have reached the special age of<br />
87, and you will be happy to know that he is still lookin’ good and feeling<br />
pretty good. In a recent conversation that I had with a student from that<br />
era, Jim’s name was mentioned and the student ended his thoughts by<br />
saying “Mr. Smith was just a great guy” - a fitting way to end this small<br />
tribute to the man who steered the good ship Merritton High and kept it<br />
in calm waters ‘way back then!<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I 11
CLOWNING AROUND<br />
Krista Walters is a fun-loving, energetic and friendly Merrittonian! Combine her bubbly personality with her natural<br />
flare for captivating the attention of children and you’ve got a sure recipe for success.<br />
Krista has been working with children for the past thirteen years at the YMCA and loves to entertain them.<br />
One year she decided to dress up as Loonette the Clown, a lead character in a Canadian children’s program entitled<br />
‘The Big Comfy Couch’, to amuse the pre-schoolers at Halloween and the children loved it. Then a few years ago, she<br />
noticed an ad for volunteers to enter the Labour Day Parade. Krista had moved to Merritton when she was young<br />
and, of course, went to the parade and carnival every year so she knew that it was a perfect opportunity to get some<br />
exposure as her alter ego. So off she went, and the response was amazing. People started calling her, telling her that<br />
someone they knew told them about her, or that they saw her in the parade. She was surprised at how popular she<br />
became and knew it was all thanks to everyone in the community spreading the word.<br />
She began to receive requests to appear at children’s parties. Krista knew that she couldn’t call herself by the<br />
same name as the clown on TV and so, when a parent suggested the name “Lunette-Alike”, she thought the name<br />
was catchy and really did explain that she was a look-alikecharacter<br />
to which the children could relate.<br />
Bulldogs!<br />
Well done Merritton Bulldogs! They<br />
finished their 2008-09 season by<br />
winning the Kingston Kids for Kids<br />
Tournament atom division gold medal.<br />
With wonderful contributions from<br />
all team members, we also want to<br />
highlight Alex Roselli, Sean Michaud,<br />
and Derek Pymont for their offensive<br />
work and Justin Rombough and Cole<br />
Misener for their strong net minding.<br />
She incorporates lots of activity in her routines ranging from<br />
dancing and stretching, playing games, face painting, and much<br />
more. She tells me that most little children she entertains believe<br />
that she has come out of the TV from The Big Comfy Couch and<br />
are so surprised when she shows up at their very own house. I saw<br />
her recently at a birthday party for a friend’s son, Colin, and was<br />
really impressed! Colin and his friends particularly enjoyed the<br />
interactive story time and having their faces painted with freckles<br />
and a clown nose.<br />
If you would like to get in touch with Krista, you can reach her at her e-mail address :<br />
kristawalters@hotmail.com or phone her at 905-988-9107.<br />
12 I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I 13
‘Waking the<br />
Sleeping Dragon’<br />
Carolyn Swan is to be commended for her leadership in breast cancer<br />
awareness. She has organized a team for the Rankin Cancer Run<br />
being held in St. Catharines on Saturday, May 23, 2009. Carolyn’s<br />
team for the Run is named after her breast cancer survivors’ dragon<br />
boat crew, ‘Waking the Sleeping Dragon’, the first of its kind in the<br />
Niagara Region. The Waking the Sleeping Dragon Boat Initiative<br />
of Niagara is a collaboration between Breast Cancer Research and<br />
Education Fund, Niagara Dragon Boat Club, Employment Ontario<br />
and Brock University’s Recreation and Leisure Department. The crew<br />
held a charity fashion show at Silver Spires Church in March. Their<br />
goal is to encourage and support those living with breast cancer to<br />
lead full and active lives by sharing experiences, strengths and hopes.<br />
Waking the Sleeping Dragon is about finding personal resources<br />
and strength as well as broadening perspectives and about creating a<br />
positive environment which encourages fun, friendship and support.<br />
If you’re interested in participating in the dragon boat or any of<br />
her other activities, please contact the editor at Merrittonmatters@<br />
hotmail.com.<br />
Anchors Away Stephen<br />
Congratulations to Stephen Burns who recently<br />
graduated from George Brown and is now off to<br />
entertain the masses on Carnival Cruise ships!<br />
From left to right, Riley Mannell (Lead), Greg Sayliss (Vice), Ben<br />
Hughes (Skip), Ben Sayliss (Vice), Amir Bukhari (Second), Brian Tiner<br />
(Lead, Under Trophy).<br />
Burleigh Hill Wins DSBN<br />
Curling Championships!<br />
By R. Hughes<br />
In February, Burleigh Hill School’s curling team travelled to Welland<br />
for a Gold Medal match where they defeated the defending champions,<br />
Sheridan Park, by a score of 5-4 to finish their season with a perfect<br />
14-0 season against other elementary schools. This young group of<br />
curlers executed the pressure shots to perfection. Vice Gregor Sayliss<br />
was responsible for a great take-out (hit and roll) in the second end to<br />
score four points. Skip Ben Hughes made an amazing draw to the button<br />
in the 5th end to score the winning point, and a pressure-filled takeout<br />
in the last end to help secure the victory. Second Ben Sayliss played<br />
extremely well all day, and executed 2 crucial takeouts in the last end to<br />
help preserve the victory. Lead players Amir Bukhari, Brian Tiner, and<br />
Riley Mannell made some incredible shots all day long, and it was their<br />
lead rocks that put Burleigh Hill in a great position to win the game.<br />
The team qualified to represent the DSBN in the Ontario Provincial<br />
Championships in April and finished 8 th in Ontario out of 80 teams,<br />
missing the Bronze medal game by 1 inch. Their final record versus grade<br />
school teams all over Ontario was 20 wins 4 losses. Congratulations on a<br />
great season boys!<br />
14 I <strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong>
St. James Anglican Church’s<br />
New Chair-Lift<br />
Dr. Tom Pekar was lauded for his volunteer work at the City of St.<br />
Catharines Recognition Night on April 22 nd . Standing beside him<br />
is MM’s photographer Jean Westlake who emerged from behind<br />
the camera long enough to have this picture taken.<br />
Town Hall Architect<br />
In the last issue, we featured an article about<br />
Merritton’s Town Hall, a wonderful example of<br />
historic Victorian architecture designed by William<br />
B. Allan and constructed in 1879. Here’s some<br />
additional information about Allan based on a<br />
report by Pat Menon to the Historical Society of St.<br />
Catharines.<br />
Former local architect William Bryson Allan<br />
(1838 - 1911) was born in Scotland and immigrated to Canada in the<br />
1850s. He settled in St. Catharines in 1861 and started a furniture<br />
business with his family while also dabbling in undertaking, sewing<br />
machine sales and photography. But it was apparent that Allan had a<br />
talent for architectural design.<br />
Allan’s first known design was the Riordan Mill in<br />
1867. Chronologically, some of Allan’s designs include: St. Paul’s Ward<br />
School (1871), Central School on Court Street (1872), First Presbyterian<br />
Church (1872), the expansion of the family furniture factory (1875), St.<br />
James Ward School (1876), and St. Andrew’s Ward School (1883). Other<br />
designs included the Protestant Orphans’ Home, Grantham Academy/St.<br />
Catharines Collegiate, St. Thomas Ward School, Merritton Cotton Mill,<br />
the R.H. Smith Company (saw works), the Oddfellows Hall, and the<br />
Merritton Town Hall.<br />
by The Reverend Pamela Guyatt<br />
It has FINALLY happened!<br />
St. James Anglican Church, on the corner of Merritt and Oakdale, is now<br />
accessible to more people. People with physical disabilities can now use our<br />
new Chair-Lift to access the entire facility.<br />
When the church was established in 1871, very few people considered<br />
physical challenges when designing worship spaces. With four entrances<br />
into the building, and a set of stairs located at each one, we had a problem.<br />
As an example, at our parking lot entrance there are eleven steps into the<br />
main worship area of the church and five steps that lead down into our<br />
small hall. We had to do something to try and correct the situation.<br />
In April 2008, we applied for a grant from the Enabling Accessibility<br />
Fund. In September 2008, we were notified that our application had been<br />
approved. Construction started in November, when the sidewalk was ‘resloped’<br />
to provide easier access from the parking lot to the door. In<br />
December, two crews arrived, one to install the Chair-Lift into the main<br />
worship area and down into the small hall. The second crew proceeded to<br />
create a new accessible washroom located across the hall from the current<br />
washrooms.<br />
All the installation and construction was completed by December 22,<br />
2008. It was amazing to have everything operating and functional for our<br />
Christmas Eve services 2 days later.<br />
I have included a picture of Doris Fraser, at the time she was recovering<br />
from knee surgery and the chair-lift allowed her to have a ‘stress free’ arrival<br />
for the Christmas Eve service. Her smile says it all.<br />
<strong>MERRITTON</strong> <strong>MATTERS</strong> I 15